It was a weekend of bonus point victories in the SA Rugby Under-19, Under-20 and Under-21 Championships as nine of the 10 winning teams scored four or more tries for valuable victories as the countdown continues to the final stages.

With only three rounds of pool matches remaining in the U20 championship and four left in the U19 and U21 championships, bonus points have become more valuable as the teams set their sights on semi-final berths.

In the U21 Championship, the Leopards registered their first victory of the season as they overcame a challenging first half against Eastern Province in Potchefstroom to register a 56-40 win thanks to an impressive eight tries to six.

The visitors tried hard to keep up, with winger Josiah Twum-Baof scoring a hat-trick, but their efforts were not enough.

Log-leaders, the Vodacom Blue Bulls, meanwhile, stretched their winning run to four matches as they pipped the Cell C Sharks 37-34 in Pretoria thanks to a strong first-half showing in which they built up an encouraging 22-7 lead, while the Xerox Golden Lions outscored DHL Western Province three tries to two in a hard-fought clash in Cape Town for a 20-12 victory.

In the U20 Championship, the Griffons secured the top spot on the log table with three pool rounds remaining thanks to their 55-12 victory against Border in Welkom compliments of an effective performance all-around, which saw Mickyle Snyders score a hat-trick and the team cross the tryline eight times.

Boland bounced back from a 19-8 deficit to edge the Valke 32-21 in Wellington as they scored five tries to four by the visitors to occupy third place on the log standings, while Griquas recovered from back-to-back defeats to beat SWD 34-20 in George to keep alive their semi-final hopes.

In the other match, a solid start for the Limpopo Blue Bulls paved the way for their 46-39 victory against the Pumas in an entertaining clash in Nelspruit as the sides scored a combined total of 12 tries and 85 points.

The Xerox Golden Lions U19’s, meanwhile, suffered their first defeat in six outings as they went down 29-5 against DHL Western Province in Cape Town, while the Leopards were in solid form against Eastern Province in Potchefstroom as they crossed the chalk eight times for their 52-20 victory to keep alive their hopes of playing their way into a playoff spot in the next four weeks.

A hat-trick by Vodacom Blue Bulls hooker Werner Fourie, meanwhile, steered the Pretoria side to valuable 40-22 home victory against the Cell C Sharks to finish the round in third position on the log standings.